As known in the art, the particular material on which information is to be stored and subsequently retrieved (decoded) is typically referred to as a card or badge; for example, a credit or security card. The card, for example, may be of the punched hole type identified in aforementioned U.S. Pat. No. 3,562,496 or may incorporate an array of indicia physically spaced on the card or medium providing the carrying coded information to render selected areas electrically or conductive than the remaining portions of the card. The areas selected define a code of the particular information to be stored in the card in much the same way that the particular selected areas punched out in a punched type card, as in U.S. Pat. No. 3,562,496, are utilized to store information. Accordingly, in the present invention, the term "card" is understood to include equivalent type media for use with card readers, such as mechanical, electrical, optical or magnetic to provide coded information (invisible or otherwise) for identification and/or security purposes.
In applicant's forementioned application Ser. No. 06/092,452, U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,769,552; 4,112,292 and 3,953,712 were made of record.